


Amicitia

by poppycurls



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Gen or Pre-Slash, M/M, One Shot, Short & Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-11
Updated: 2015-02-11
Packaged: 2018-03-11 21:55:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3334235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/poppycurls/pseuds/poppycurls
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The story of two friends, as told by Sir Leon.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Amicitia

**Author's Note:**

> (Set in season 1 or 2, no definite episode)

Leon loves Merlin.

Well, not in that way, of course, he hardly knows the boy. But, he loves Merlin. And he has his reasons.

Leon loves Arthur. They had grown up together, with Leon only a few years older than the prince. He still remembers being brought to the castle as a young boy to meet the newborn royal. From then on, Leon viewed Arthur as the younger brother he never had - Arthur used to follow him around, and when he was old enough, they would spend evenings swordfighting. Leon had his friends, Arthur had his, but like all siblings, they had each other’s backs and were more than happy to spend a day together, lounging around.

Like all older brothers, Leon spent a lot of time looking out for Arthur and worrying about him. After he was knighted, Leon was forced to watch from a distance as Arthur became of age. He watched Arthur stop laughing, he watched his shoulders hunch, heavy with responsibilities, and he watched as Arthur’s days of fun became less and less. Leon loved his life as a knight, it’s all that he’s ever wanted to be, but he could tell in the way that Arthur’s eyes stopped lighting up that he young prince didn’t feel the same way. He wanted to help - but, really what could he do? Stop Arthur from becoming the prince of Camelot? No, there was just no way to help the young man who Leon had come to love as kin, and it saddened him greatly.

Leon loves Merlin, for doing what he could not.

At first, when Leon watched Arthur’s new manservant, he saw nothing, just another person who bowed his head in front of the royal court and poured wine with nervous hands. After a few months, however, Leon started to notice things. He noticed the playful, friendly way that Arthur would bump his shoulder when Leon passed, the way the bags under Arthur’s eyes disappeared, and the way that Arthur would attend to all his princely duties with a large grin. Leon was thankful - whispering his gratitude to the heavens and finally ceasing his worrying. He assumed that the countless tonics that Gaius kept providing had worked.

Then, Leon started to notice more. He noticed the insults flying between Arthur and Merlin when they thought no one was watching, paired not with fierce glares, but with genuine smiles. He noticed the way Arthur forced Merlin to come along with him on his numerous adventures, not to torture him, but rather for the need of a good friend to keep him company. The list was endless - every day, Leon looked and saw something new, another way that Merlin was helping the crowned prince, not through the form of a servant, but through the form of a best friend. Though he would never admit this to anyone, Leon trusted Merlin to keep Arthur safe. Something about him convinced Leon that Merlin would protect Arthur and again and again, and already has.

Leon loves them both, for very different reasons.

Leon thinks about all this, a small smile stretching across his face as he wanders around the back of the castle, broken from his reverie only by a shout. He turns his head, searching for the source of the noise, and sees Merlin himself, racing towards him. Fear and alarm makes Leon jump in surprise, but Merlin passes him without stopping. As he passes, Leon hears him laughing. Arthur rounds the corner, and Leon turns his head yet again to watch. Arthur passes him, laughing and smiling, his eyes on Merlins back as the chase each other around the castle. Leon knows he should stop them, reprimand them for falling out of typical court etiquette, but he doesn’t, instead listening as their laughter fades away.

After all, Leon loves Arthur and Merlin, almost as much as they love each other.

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone!  
> Er, I have nothing to say but, Happy Early Valentine's Day!  
> Comment and/or kudo? :3  
> PSA: If you're reading this, you're a cutie pie and I love you.  
> As always,  
> TTFN!


End file.
